Episode 623: 2023 = Best Year of Your Life

Happy New Year, Dental A-Team!

This year is your year. Kiera encourages listeners to commit to a beautiful year, to create a word for 2023 (and shares her own), and come up with SMART goals for your practice and personal life that will help you keep your word in mind.

Share your word and goals with us! Email [email protected]. 

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Transcript:

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0:00:05.9 Kiera Dent: Hey everyone, welcome to the Dental A Team podcast. I'm your host Kiera Dent, and I have this crazy idea that maybe I could combine a doctor and a team member's perspective, because let's face it, dentistry can be a challenging profession with those two perspectives. I've been a dental assistant, treatment coordinator, scheduler, biller, office manager, regional manager, practice owner, and I have a team of traveling consultants where we have traveled over 165 different offices coaching teams. Yep, we don't just understand you, we are you. Our mission is to positively impact the world of dental, and I believe that this podcast is the greatest way I can help elevate teams, grow VIP experiences, reduce stress, and create A Team. Welcome to the Dental A Team podcast.

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0:00:51.1 KD: Hello Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera and you guys, oh my gosh, I am so freaking pumped. Guys, we're rolling into the new year. I hope you are so excited. Cheers to 2023. I hope that I am the person that's helping bring your new year in. And if I am, man, I'm giving you a high five, a hug. Thanks for celebrating the new year with me. You guys, 2023, we're here. It's here guys. I'm so excited. I get beyond giddy for a new year, a new opportunity because, gosh, back in college, I remember one day I woke up and I was like, man, I love new years, new months, new days, because they're brand new days with no mistakes. And I get an unpainted canvas to become whoever I want to be. So guys, as we're rolling into 2023, I want to kick this off and have you guys kick off your new years with a bang. So first and foremost, cheers. It's gonna be a great year. And I want you to set an intention right now that this is going to be the best year of your life, no matter what happens.

0:01:58.3 KD: Okay? No matter what happens, decide right here, right now, that 2023 is going to be the best year of your life and decide to live in that beautiful state every single day. You can do that no matter what happens, no matter the consequences, no matter if team members quit, if you aren't doing well, if this, that... You get to decide to live in a beautiful state. I was reading a book. I talked about it on my book club. It's the one with a lot of explicitives. And there was something that they talked about that I really loved. And they talked about a man who was going to commit suicide, and don't worry guys, it's going to be positive. I promise. Welcome to the new year. We're talking suicide. But he decided that before he committed suicide, he was going to take responsibility for every single thing that happened to him for one year. And if at the end of that one year, he still felt like life was not worth living, then he would attempt suicide. This man has gone on to become a world class speaker as shared, because he realized that life really is his responsibility.

0:03:08.9 KD: And so I want you guys, number one, to cheers to the new year and to truly commit that no matter what, you are gonna live in a beautiful state and 2023 is going to be the best year of your life. Why can't it be? Why can't it be? Why do we always have to wait for something? Why do we have to have the perfect spouse, the perfect life, the perfect house, the perfect car, the perfect practice, the perfect team before we can have a beautiful life and a beautiful state? So I want you guys right now to decide that 2023 is going to be the best year of your life. That's number one. Number two, I want you to create a word for yourself that is going to basically encompass the entire year that you are choosing to live and to create. So for me, I start this, sorry, I'm a little late to the party, I usually start this around October, November, December, and just started thinking of, who do I want to become next year? What is the word? So for 2022, my word was abundant wealth. I really wanted to work on wealth and health, were my two main focuses.

0:04:17.1 KD: So my goals all centered around that. I had a goal to learn to invest, which I ended up doing. I had a goal to make money off of investments. I don't know if you guys were a part of 2022, but not the best year to start investing. I created a real estate company, 'cause I wanted to have that as another revenue stream, so I wasn't just tied to one, and I wanted to start to build up my wealth portfolio. I built a trust, got my life in order in that way. That was weird. Felt weird to have to talk about when I die, this is what's gonna happen, but I really wanted to start to build my wealth portfolio. So that was a big zone for me that I really wanted to build last year. And then health, my goal was to be in the best shape of my life. Well, I will promise you, I am not in the best shape of my life. I've had severe knee and hip pain and shoulder pain for the last two years, but I took it as a opportunity. I learned about Egoscue.

0:05:14.0 KD: If you guys are having pain, Egoscue has been a true game changer. I feel like it is better than PT. I had Egoscue on the podcast a while ago and they've just been awesome. And I've learned... Like my body is so much better. It's not perfect, but I feel I was able to run again for the first time in two years. And so to be on that path of optimum health and abundant wealth were my words for 2022. So 2023, I will share with you guys my word. My word for 2023 is joy and happiness. And the reason why I do this, who knows, I could change it guys. You never know. You're allowed to change. But as of today, joy and happiness. Joy is my real word. And I was thinking about it. And the reason why is because while last year, 2022, was great, a lot of good things happened, it was actually a really hard year for me. I think some of you heard about my IVF journey and I shared a little bit of it on the podcast. I'm still debating on making my podcast, Maybe Mama. The reason I haven't started it is because I'm not sure that that very intimate part of my life that was so hard for me last year, I'm not sure I'm ready to share all of those intimate details with the world of potential critics.

0:06:35.1 KD: Honestly, we have such a beautiful family with the Dental A Team podcast family and you guys are so supportive and so loving and you leave great reviews and you share your friends and your clients of ours and you've become my dearest friends and family, and yet there are some people in this world that I know could possibly criticize a part of me that I'm not quite sure I'm ready to. And so in 2022, it was honestly a really hard year personally for me. I had some of the darkest, hardest days. Guys, I've never experienced heartache. You guys, I shared in my podcast, I shared the one where I attempted suicide. My husband and I were on divorce row. That is so many things and to say the year of three failed IVF cycles were the hardest days of heartache is not an exaggeration. I've never experienced heartache that deep, that raw. And I think it's because at the end of the day, there's nothing that I can do. It's my body and my body just decides it doesn't want to make eggs.

0:07:40.1 KD: And no matter how hard I try as someone who's a very high achiever, it took a lot out of me last year. And so that's why I'm saying like for 2023, I want you guys to commit that it's gonna be the best year of your life no matter what. But that's why my word this year is joy, to find joy no matter what. Whether we get to have kids or we don't get to have kids. That is a completely... That's something I can't control, guys. Could I adopt? Of course I could adopt. Could I... Are there a thousand different options? Yes. But this is my path and my journey and my life and the things that I want. And so for me, the word joy, just when I was thinking about it, and guys, this is how it works, when I'm thinking of words for my year, it's almost like a Rolodex, and it's like...

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0:08:28.7 KD: Like it could be wealth, it could be health, it could be abundance, it could be happiness, it could be... Stop, and then I'd be like, and joy. And I was like, "Yep, that's the word." Joy is the word of who I want to be and what I want to feel. I didn't want happiness. I felt like happiness was fleeting. And so joy was for me. And so for you guys, I want you to think of, one, write your intention that no matter what, guys, I literally have a sticky note on my computer that says, no matter what, decide to live in a beautiful state. Why wait until my final moments? Life is short. So that's number one. Number two is I want you to get a word, and when you choose your word for this year, I want you to email me hello at the dentalateam.com because it'll become more real for you. Guys, I'm putting joy out there on the podcast so it becomes real for me. Thank you all for being my accountability partner.

0:09:16.2 KD: Hello Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and you guys, how was your 2022? I want you to look back and tell me, was it the year of years or was it a really hard year? Did you crush it or did it crush you? This is the time guys, for end of year Dental A Team platinum is welcoming you, where we will physically fly to your practice. We will come and we will elevate your dreams and make them into a reality. And guys, space is limited and prices are going up. This is not a sales pitch. This is not something where I'm trying to scare you into it. I'm just facing the reality of, inflation is here, flights are expensive and I want to see as many people as we possibly can and serve as many as we can. So if you want to be part of our elite group of people, there are limited spaces 'cause our consultants can only see as many.

0:10:07.5 KD: We are taking on 10 new platinum offices by the end of the year and that's it. That's all we have space for. So if you want to be one of the elite 10, come join us. Be a part of our top notch elite doctor community. Be a part of our office manager and hygiene and front office communities. Get your operations manual done and live the life that you've only been dreaming of today. Email me hello at the dentalateam.com and make 2023 truly a year that's unforgettable. We are a complete tax write off and like I said, we are only taking 10 offices. So don't get left behind. Be one of those 10 and I cannot wait to give you the biggest, warmest welcome to completely and utterly changing your life for good. Welcome to the Dental A Team. I can't wait for you to join us. Hello at the dentalateam.com. Cheers to 2023 and making you your best self yet.

0:11:03.9 KD: And then number three, I want you guys, if you haven't done so already, I would love and if you need help, this is literally what I do for a living guys and I'm dang good at it and our team is dang good at it, which is why I'm gonna help you. I want you to create your goals for 2023. Okay? They need to be smart. So specific, measurable, attainable, realistic with a timeframe and I would build it around your word. So do it in order, guys. Most of the time we go and jump and we try to make our goals and like, "I'm gonna do this," but why? My why this year is to feel joy and no matter what, to live in a beautiful state. Perfect. That's my why. So I'm going to build goals around that why, goals that are going to bring me joy.

0:11:47.3 KD: Last year you guys heard my goals of abundant wealth and health. I built my goals around what I wanted to become. I feel like this is so important because it gives you the juice and the motivation to keep freaking going when the days are hard. So you've got to come up with that first. So then I want you to build a plan. I want you to build a plan of what you want to become personally and professionally. I try to limit mine to three goals, personally and professionally as a professional goal. If you guys are not in rapid growth, I would recommend at least a 10% growth of your business this year. I always like to focus on overhead. If you guys heard my Thanksgiving podcast, something where it's your giving back goal. We did our make a wish last year, working on ours this year. We have a team meeting to solidify what our live to give portion of our company will be this year, but building a goal around profitability, growth of the company, and then what do you want it to be? Do you want to become systematized this year? Do you want to get your operations manual completed?

0:12:47.7 KD: If so, you should definitely join our operations manual intensive. I hope you are there because we are literally going through three months of getting you guys systematized with a weekly accountability. So join us, email me if you want to join in. Hello at the dentalateam.com. Do you want to have your case acceptance increased? Do you want to hire an associate? Do you want to expand? All of those things are great things for your practice. So build that. And then on the flip side, I want you to also build personal goals. What are your personal goals? I will strongly advise based on my goals last year. Last year my goal was to have a baby, guys. That was really hard because I don't know if you know, but if your body doesn't want to get pregnant, it's really hard to do so. So I would probably recommend personal goals that you actually have control over. If it's that you want to get into the best shape of your life, notice I didn't say lose 10 pounds, but get into the best shape of your life. If you... Literally guys, one year, which I should probably have it as a goal again this year, is to make friends, guys, I'm such a loner. [chuckle] I do not let many people into my life. And so that's where it's like, I need to have more joy in my life and I want more joy in my life.

0:14:00.7 KD: And so I have literally had it as a goal to make one real friend this year. I had some friends, some clients who said they wanted to go on vacation every quarter. And so we built it out. We mapped it out so where they could hit their production goals plus go on vacation every year. Guys, these personal goals I feel give you the fire and the motivation to keep going. If all I did was just want to grow for production and, you know, it's great to give back, that's not as exciting for me, but when I'm building my life and my goals and I do fun things, guys, this year, a 100%, it's gonna be to hit my seventh continent. Don't you guys even think about it. I've got one continent left and it's not Antarctica. I've already been there. It was amazing. I would 100% go back. So if anyone wants to go, let me know.

0:14:50.8 KD: But Asia is my last continent. So those things motivate me. They light me up. They're fun. Like that is the fun. That is why you work guys is to have a personal life. So make three goals, up to three personally and professionally. And then you're welcome to email me, but goals are just wishes until they have a plan. And so what is your plan to achieve it? For me, I break it down by quarter and what I need to do to hit each of these each quarter. I also take it to my team and they build upon it. So I do draft one and they build the next draft. That's what they want to contribute and become as well. So take it to your team and then be tracking it. So we track our goals. I'm not kidding guys. If you literally came and joined our Monday morning meeting, it is on Zoom. So anybody could truthfully come and watch us every single Monday morning. We go over our goals as a company of what we're aiming for, where we're at, and we're tracking those metrics and optics every single week. But I also do it on my personal side.

0:15:53.5 KD: So I print this out. I'm not kidding guys. I fold it in force and it goes in my little journal that I write in every single day. And I review my goals and I track and I cross off and I have it broken into quarters. So that's my method. That's what works for me. What I'm gonna recommend for you is that you, one, commit that no matter what, 2023 is gonna be the best year of your life. What do you have to do to make it that way? Do you need to hire a coach? Do you need to have an accountability partner? Do you need to sign up for a gym trainer? Do you need to hire an in-house chef? I've done all these things guys. When I'm committed to goals, I'm gonna do whatever it takes to get there because goals to me are not wishes. They are musts. When I write a goal, you better believe I will freaking claw scratch, grow... Guys, why do you think I tried three failed IVF cycles? 'Cause I had a goal to get pregnant and have a baby. Okay, well, it didn't work, but I did every single thing in my power, on wait lists, talked to doctors in other states.

0:16:51.0 KD: When did like hocus pocus Houdini work on me, guys? When I say I have tried so many things, do I think I've done everything? The answer is no, but did I give it a good freaking effort to where I can feel good about my year? Yes. So don't make these goals halfheartedly. Be 100% committed to them, and then make sure you've got the resources around you so you're successful. For me, I have to have an accountability coach, period. I will not get my goals done if I don't have to report to somebody. That's how I am. That's who I am. That's what I know and I know I will do it. Does it cost money? Yes. Do I make sacrifices so I have that? Yes. Do they pay for themselves every single time? 1000%, yes. Does it scare the shenanigans out of me every time I pay that check? Absolutely. Is it worth it? Beyond anything else. And do I write a check with a smile every single month? The answer is yes. So what do you need to do to get there? If we can help you, I would love to. Hello at the dentalateam.com.

0:17:47.1 KD: Next up, you gotta have your word. That's your word. What is your word for this year? And then build those personal and professional goals and take it to your team and make a plan. So that's my like, happy new year's guys. I hope it's the best day. I hope you're rocking and rolling, but make this year count. Like I said, why wait until the final moments? Life is short. Decide right now that no matter what, you're gonna live in a beautiful state and you are gonna make it that way. So guys, like I said, if I can help you, support you, email me, tell me your goals, I'm happy to be an accountability partner. Feel free to join our Dental A Team platinum family. I am so excited. We have so many surprises from individual team masterminds for different departments with our office managers and our doctors and our hygienists to team training events for systems. We're gonna get you guys systematized this year to one-on-one coaching to our team summit. That's in April, guys. Like I told you, be sure to head on over to our website and join us, April 28th and 29th.

0:18:49.6 KD: Be sure to be there. But our platinum family is gonna get some great surprises with it for us flying into your practice. This year is the year of just crazy awesome client experiences that I am so excited to share with our family. So if you want to be a part of that, I would love to welcome you. So reach out, see if you're a candidate. Hello at the dentalateam.com. We have virtual and in-person options. So reach out, but regardless of what you choose to do, take action today. It is the first day of the year. It is brand new, no mistakes. You guys, this is your blank canvas and you get to paint it. You get to decide. If I was you, I would have probably a team meeting where we all have blank canvases and we get to build and we get to create. And I'd put a bunch of paints and glitter and colors, and people get to create their own canvas. And I would do that as a symbol of this year. It's not gonna look exactly the way you have in your mind, but it is going to be absolutely perfect because no matter what, you are deciding to live in a beautiful state and make 2023 your best year yet.

0:19:54.0 KD: Guys, I'm so freaking excited. Cheers to 2023. I am so happy to be a part of this with you. I hope you know that I'm cheering you on and I love and adore you. And I'm just so excited for all the potential this year has, but with potential comes responsibility. So be responsible of the potential you have. Take action, massive action guys, live your dream of a life. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team podcast.

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0:20:23.4 KD: And that wraps it up for another episode of the Dental A Team podcast. Thank you so much for listening and we'll talk to you next time.